In addition to certain guarantees provided by law, LegalZoom guarantees your satisfaction with our services and support. Because our company was created by experienced attorneys, we strive to be the best legal document service on the web. If you are not satisfied with our services, please contact us immediately and we will correct the situation, provide a refund or offer credit that can be used for future LegalZoom orders.

LegalZoom Satisfaction Guarantee Details:

If you're not satisfied, simply call us toll-free at (800) 773-0888 during our normal business hours. All requests made under this guarantee must be made within 60 days of purchase. We will process your request within 5 business days after we've received all of the documents and materials sent to you. Unfortunately, we can't refund or credit any money paid to government entities, such as filing fees or taxes, or to other third parties with a role in processing your order. We also cannot refund any money paid by you directly to third parties, such as payments made by you directly to attorneys affiliated with our legal plans or attorney-assisted products.

If you want to exchange the product you ordered for a different one, you must request this exchange and complete your replacement order within 60 days of purchase. The purchase price of the original item, less any money paid to government entities, such as filing fees or taxes, or to other third parties with a role in processing your order, will be credited to your LegalZoom account. Any payments made directly by you to attorneys affiliated with our legal plans or attorney-assisted products are not eligible for exchange or credit. Any price difference between the original order and the replacement order or, if a replacement order is not completed within 60 days of purchase, the full original purchase price (in each case less any money paid to government entities or other third parties) will be credited to the original form of payment. If you paid for your original order by check, LegalZoom will mail a check for the applicable amount to your billing address.

Please note that we cannot guarantee the results or outcome of your particular procedure. For instance, the government may reject a trademark application for legal reasons beyond the scope of LegalZoom's service. In some cases, a government backlog can lead to long delays before your process is complete. Similarly, LegalZoom does not guarantee the results or outcomes of the services rendered by our legal plan attorneys or attorney-assisted products. Problems like these are beyond our control and are not covered by this guarantee.

Since we're dedicating time and effort to your legal document preparation, our guarantee only covers satisfaction issues caused by LegalZoom - not changes to your situation or your state of mind.

How to File a Divorce in New Jersey

How to File a Divorce in New Jersey

For any married couple, a divorce will accomplish two things: (1) severing the marital relationship, and (2) dividing assets and debts. If one of them will be unable to be self-supporting after the divorce, the issue of alimony may arise. If there are minor children, they will also need to resolve issues of child custody, visitation, and support.

Residency and Where to File

In order to file for divorce in New Jersey, one of the following requirements must be met: (1) one party has been a resident of New Jersey for at least 1 year, or (2) if the cause of the divorce is adultery that occurred in New Jersey, one party must be a resident (without any time limitation). You may file in the Chancery Division of Superior Court in any New Jersey county.

Procedures

The simplest procedure is an uncontested divorce, where you and your spouse can reach an agreement about the division of your property, and, if you have any children, what arrangements will be made for them. You begin by preparing a Complaint for Divorce, along with various other supporting documents. For an uncontested divorce, one of these documents will be a marital settlement agreement outlining the division of assets, and your agreement regarding any children. These documents are filed with the court, and copies of them are provided to your spouse. You will attend a court hearing, at which time the judge will make sure that all of your paperwork is in order, perhaps ask you a few questions, and enter your Judgment of Divorce.

Grounds for Divorce

Grounds for divorce are legally recognized reasons to get a divorce. This is the justification for severing the marital relationship. New Jersey, like most states, has what are commonly called no-fault grounds for divorce, and several traditional fault-based grounds.

To get a no-fault divorce in New Jersey you need to state in the Complaint for Divorce that “there are irreconcilable differences which have caused the breakdown of the marriage for a period of six months and which make it appear that the marriage should be dissolved and that there is not a reasonable prospect of reconciliation,” or “the parties have been living separate and apart for 18 months, and there is no reasonable prospect of reconciliation.”

The fault-based grounds for divorce are: adultery, wilful desertion for 12 months, extreme cruelty (must file within 3 months after the last act alleged), alcoholism or drug addiction, institutionalism for mental illness for 24 months after the marriage and before filing, imprisonment for 18 months (provided there is no cohabitation after release), and deviant sexual conduct voluntarily performed without consent of the other party. However, in most cases, there is no reason to use any of these, since they add complexity to the process by requiring proof.

Property Division

New Jersey divorce law provides that all property is marital property, regardless of how or when it was acquired. In dividing property the judge must consider the following factors:

the duration of the marriage or civil union,

each party’s age, and physical and emotional health,

each party’s income or property brought to the marriage or civil union,

the standard of living established during the marriage or civil union,

any written agreement made by the parties,

each party’s economic circumstances when the property division becomes effective,

each party’s income and earning capacity, including length of absence from the job market, custodial responsibilities for children, and the time and expense necessary to acquire sufficient training to become self-supporting,

each party’s contribution to the education, training or earning power of the other,

each party’s contribution to the acquisition, dissipation, preservation, depreciation, or appreciation of the marital or civil union property, and as well as a homemaker,

the tax consequences of the proposed distribution to each party,

the present value of the property,

the need of a parent who has physical custody of a child to own or occupy the marital residence or civil union shared residence, and to use or own the household effects,

the debts and liabilities of the parties,

the need for a trust fund for medical or educational costs for a party or child,

the extent to which a party deferred achieving their career goals, and

any other factors the court deems relevant.

Alimony in New Jersey

Absent an agreement of the parties, the judge will decide whether to award alimony, and if so, the amount and duration of alimony, after considering the following factors:

the actual need and ability of the parties to pay,

the duration of the marriage or civil union,

the age, physical and emotional health of the parties,

the standard of living established in the marriage or civil union and the likelihood that each party can maintain a reasonably comparable standard of living,

the length of absence from the job market of the party seeking maintenance,

the parental responsibilities for the children,

the time and expense needed to acquire education or training for the party seeking maintenance to find appropriate employment, the availability of the training and employment, and the opportunity for future acquisitions of capital assets and income,

each party’s contributions to the marriage or civil union, including to the care and education of the child, and interruption of personal careers or education,

the equitable distribution of property ordered and any payouts of current income,

the income available to a party through investment of any assets held by that party,

the tax treatment and consequences to both parties of any alimony award,

the nature, amount, and length of temporary support paid, if any, and

any other factor the court deems relevant.

Child Custody in New Jersey

There is a mandatory “Parent Education Program.” Any agreement reached on custody will be accepted by the judge unless it is not in the child’s best interest. If you cannot reach a custody agreement, the judge will decide the issue, after considering the following factors:

each party’s ability to agree, communicate, and cooperate relating to the child,

each party’s willingness to accept custody, and any history of unwillingness to allow parenting time not based on substantiated abuse,

the interaction and relationship of the child with his or her parents and siblings,

any history of domestic violence, and the safety of the child and either party from physical abuse by the other party,

the child’s preference, when of sufficient age and capacity to reason,

the needs of the child,

the stability of the home environment offered,

the quality and continuity of the child’s education,

the fitness of the parties,

the geographical proximity of the parties’ homes,

the extent and quality of the time spent with the child prior to or after separation,

the party’s employment responsibilities

and the age and number of the children, and

any other factor the judge determines to be relevant.

Child Support in New Jersey

Child support is determined by the New Jersey Child Support Guidelines that may be found at the New Jersey Child Support website.

Miscellaneous Matters

Either party may resume any name used before marriage, or may assume any surname.

If you are considering an uncontested divorce, LegalZoom can help you get the divorce documents you need. We help you fill out the paperwork and check it for completeness and accuracy, and provide step-by-step instructions for filing and completing your divorce.

Disclaimer: Communications between you and LegalZoom are protected by our Privacy Policy but not by the attorney-client privilege or as work product. LegalZoom provides access to independent attorneys and self-help services at your specific direction. We are not a law firm or a substitute for an attorney or law firm. We cannot provide any kind of advice, explanation, opinion, or recommendation about possible legal rights, remedies, defenses, options, selection of forms or strategies. Your access to the website is subject to our Terms of Use.

LegalZoom gladly provides services to citizens of the EU wishing to start a business or protect their intellectual property in the United States. Additional costs may apply.